The Eco-Consciousness! Organic Vs Natural

The Go Green Guy | August 31, 2012 | 0 Comments

Organic vs Natural a Guest post by Jenny Williams

What makes organic different from natural products? Which one is better to use? Are natural products 100% harmless? These are commonly asked questions by the customers which tend to impact their shopping nowadays. If you are a little confused while navigating several market products for organic and natural labels you are not alone. Today everything from beauty products to food items to accessories is marked with a label of either “organic” or” natural” claiming their eco-friendly nature.

The difference between organic and natural is not only confined to the quality of the product but is stretched to the levels of certifications too. Government has taken breakthrough steps in this field as well, like in United States only those farms and businesses can market their product as “organic” that meets standards of National Organic Products, a department of agriculture. All such products have USDA label on them which claims to be completely harmless to health.

What is organic and what is natural?

The organic label means that the product contains at least 95 percent of organically processed ingredients. Any product containing less than 75 percent organic ingredients are not certified to use the label organic. On the other hand, a label of natural must explain how the product is classified as natural. As per the USDA guidelines for categorizing a product natural it has to be minimally processed, should not contain artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners and synthetic ingredients.

Apart from this even the cosmetics requires minimum requirements to be labeled as organic and natural. Brands must be non-synthetic and eco-friendly to the customers as well as to the environment. All the products ranging from cold creams, moisturizers, anti-aging cream to astringents and toners, every product must fulfill the organic guidelines to be labeled as organic.

Some of the cosmetic products under this category are Jonathan products, Skyn Iceland Products and natural makeup lines such as Mineral that has natural sun block.

What should be trusted more organic or natural?

A recent survey found that most of the people were not satisfied from the products labeled as natural because they were not confident about the natural label standards. The reason behind this reaction was that products showing these labels were not able to back up all the claims. At first this concept of natural and organic came into play to conserve people and environment from pesticides and fertilizers. Then gradually companies started using these labels to fill their pockets in the disguise of eco conscious market. Therefore it has become the need of hour for the consumers to check the ingredients, for which they are paying relatively high.

Do not be scammed by the companies who are just there for fat bucks

·True Eco-conscious companies will always be careful on the selection of materials used for packaging, along with the labels. If you read the labels of processed foods you’ll likely discover that majority of them contain derivatives of one or both of the two most widely planted crops in the world, corn and soy, so don’t go for them if organic foods are your cup of tea.

· Always keep a check on the label for ‘USDA Certified organic’ and ‘Non- GMO (Genetically modified Organisms)’.

·Be aware of “all natural” claims don’t believe a package label. Do your research, read labels. And learn what all the ingredients listed are actually natural.

By now you must be aware that ‘organic’ and ‘natural’ are not interchangeable terms. You may see ‘natural’ and ‘all natural’ on product labels but make sure that these are true and never confuse them with ‘organic’ Only products that are processed through USDA organic standards can be labeled as organic.

Author Bio:

Jenny Williams is a dermatologist by profession and blogging is her hobby. She loves trying out anti-aging creams and shares her vast knowledge and experience by interacting with people on the internet. Jenny is passionate about reading fiction and traveling.